Didier Deschamps has been discussing the options available to him as head coach of the France national team, and has explained that he thinks Milan and Inter strikers Olivier Giroud and Marcus Thuram possess similar profiles.
Giroud and Thuram have been called-up as expected by the France boss for their Euro 2024 qualifiers against the Netherlands and Scotland in the coming weeks. They are part of a list of six Serie A representatives in the current Les Bleus set-up.
Deschamps, conducting a press conference from the team’s base on Monday, faced questions over the different options he is able to call upon in attack.
With the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Randal Kolo Muani, Antonie Griezmann, Kingsley Coman, Ousmanne Dembele as well as Giroud and Thuram in the squad, Deschapms was asked how he decides who to start in any given match.
“The hierarchies are evolving, it’s not because one scores three goals and another doesn’t score that the former becomes our first choice,” he told the press, reported via TMW.
“Olivier (Giroud) is 37 years old, which means he needs a bit of management from the coach. He usually plays with Milan, but rarely plays entire matches. The choice is more about the profile in relation to the opponent.”
Giroud has been a mainstay in the France starting XI for the best part of the last decade and is his nation’s all-time leading goalscorer.
However, a rich depth of attacking talents means that his place in the starting line-up is no longer a guarantee.
“Olivier and Marcus (Thuram) have similar profiles, Kolo (Muani), on the other hand, is different. The objective is to always be more dangerous and have more options than the other team,” Deschamps concluded.